10
Personal Locator Lights

Say goodbye to the use-it-once green stick. Say
hello to some bright new ideas for night dives.

- By John Francis

The Cyalume light stick is fast going the way of the horse-collar BC
and the single-stage regulator, replaced by various battery-powered gizmos. Even the new
name sounds higher tech: personal locator lights.

One big downside of the light stick is that it becomes trash after a
single use, while electric lights are reusable. Another is that light sticks sometimes
discharge in the package or are triggered accidentally, turning them into duds at the dive
site.

Persistent Problems

Actually, electric lights aren't the perfect solution either. Dead
batteries are trash, too, though less visible. Batteries hide their morsels of lead in a
landfill somewhere, assuming all of us can resist the temptation to hear them plunk into
the water. And lights with the twist-to-turn-on design (almost all of the personal locator
lights) can self-discharge in your gear bag, too.

More Visibility

What an electric light can do that a light stick can'tflash. A
flashing light is far more noticeable than a steady one of the same brightness. I viewed
all these lights together, plus a couple of light sticks, from the same distance under
water, and the difference was striking.

Brighter Bulbs, Longer Life

But it's the improvement of LEDslight-emitting diodes, like
the ones used in digital watchesthat probably spells the end of Cyalume sticks. LEDs
are brighter than before, and available in white and orange as well as red. (Though we
think of red as an attention-catching color, it doesn't penetrate water well. All the
white lights were brighter than the red ones.)

LED bulbs last almost forever100,000 hours is one claim I've
seen, but I'm not going to test it. They don't break if you drop the light, and they're
very gentle on batteries. More than 24 hours is the typical battery life with LEDs, which
makes them truly reusable lights. LEDs are still not as bright as incandescent lights,
however.

Maybe more significant than battery life is the small battery size
this makes possible. LED locator lights can be tiny, with clever, unobtrusive mountings.
And the little camera batteries that drive them are less of a trash problem than are
flashlight batteries.

Two Notes on the Tests

The dimmest of the LED lights is about as bright as a Cyalume stick.
I've indicated their brightness below as equal to one light stick, two light sticks, etc.
Personal locator lights should be distinguished from strobes, by the way. Strobes are
intended to signal an emergency and, in my opinion, should not be used as locators.

10 Night Lights Reviewed

Aqua Flare

Mark-Lite Fire Fly

Aqua Flash

Sea Star

Lazer-Stik

Versa-Lite

Mark III

VIP Safety Light

Mark-Lite

Yoke Light

Aqua Flare

Rating * * *

Basically the same body as Princeton Tec's PT
Tec 20 light, and very bright. But maybe too bright at close range, as it will degrade
your night vision. Using the pink or blue cone to dissipate light would be better choices
in that case. All of the cones luminesce if the batteries or bulb die, a nice touch. The
glow is visible from all directions except from directly behind the light. You can remove
the cone under water, turning the light into a small flashlight. No way to mount it except
by its lanyard, so it's a largish object dangling around.

Rating * * * *

Also with the PT Tec 20 body, but with a
flashing light and a cone to dissipate the light. This was one of the brightest lights of
the group at a distance in murky water. A good choice for marking the anchor chain, for
example. The cone luminesces, as on the Aqua Flare. Slots on the body let you strap the
Aqua Flash to your arm.

Rating * *

If you miss your Cyalume stick, you'll love
the Lazer-Stik, because it's almost exactly the same size, shape and illumination, and has
the same lanyard hole at one end. It will do anything a chemical light will do, but for
longer, and a flashing version is available. Batteries die sooner than with other
LEDsin about 12 hours instead of about 24.

Rating * * * *

One of the brightest lights in the test, very
nearly as bright as the VIP and less directional; the cone spreads the light in all
directions fairly evenly. That's done by putting a curved strip of white plastic in the
cone, which is illuminated by the bulb below. Not high-tech, but it works. The price of
brightness is a light body large enough to hold three AA cells. But a battery life of
10-plus hours is claimed. I got about nine hours in continuous use, and in normal,
intermittent use they would last longer. That's pretty good for a flashlight. Also
available is the Mark 3 LED, an LED flashlight that doubles as a marker light (suggested
retail, $30).

Rating * * *

Strap slots allow arm mounting. It resembles
the Sea Star with an incandescent bulb, but it's a bit bigger, a bit less bright, with a
bit more battery life. Optional kits convert to flashlight or strobe.

Rating * * *

Five red LEDs on a ribbon of circuit board
flash rapidly in a random pattern, making an eye-catching display. The board is clear so
the LEDs are visible from all directions. The dancing lights make the Fire Fly more
noticeable than it would be otherwise, since the LEDs are not brighter than one Cyalume
stick. Batteries are claimed to last over four days.

Rating * * *

Symbolizing the trend from incandescent bulbs
to LEDs, the Sea Star comes with both. Changing them is a little trickyyou have to
feed two wires into two holes blindbut the difference in illumination is striking.
With the white incandescent bulb, this tiny light is one of the brightest. Batteries will
last only two or three hours, though, compared to 24 or more with the red LED. A flashing
red LED version is promised soon. The only way to mount it is with a lanyard at its base.
It floats light-up.

Rating * * * *

The best-known of Innovative Scuba Concepts'
line of, well, innovative locator lights, the Versa-Lite is available in red or amber,
steady or flashing versions. What sets it apart, though, is its small size and weight,
allowing for more mounting options. With watch-strap slots, you could strap it or tape it
almost anywhere. It's available pre-mounted to the back of a "Slap Strap" mask
strap, a clever idea. My only complaints are (a small one) that twisting the light on or
off is difficult with wet hands, and (a bigger one) the glow is fairly
directionallike two sticks straight ahead but like only one to the side. The
Versa-Lite is a Best Buy.

Rating * * * *

This LED is so bright, and focused into such
a narrow beam, that it can be used as a flashlight. From straight ahead, it was the
brightest locator light I tested. You'd think there wouldn't be any illumination to the
sides, and there isn't as much out of the water. But if there is any particulate matter in
the water to dissipate the beam, the result is a large ball of amber light visible from
all directions. A rotating bezel selects off, constant on, flashing and SOS modesthe
best on/off switch of the bunch by far because it won't go on accidentally in your gear
bag. The VIP is much heavier than the lightweight Versa-Lite, and oddly shaped. And with
just one wide strap slot on the back, it is harder to mount securely. Nevertheless, the
VIP is the Tester's Choice.

Rating * * * *

Another clever idea, this is basically a
Versa-Lite incorporated into a regulator yoke screw. That way, the light is not a separate
piece of equipment to be messed with. Three thread sizes are available for different
yokes. On the down side, it's possible to turn on the light accidentally while tightening
the yoke screw. And in the normal swimming position, the strongest part of the fairly
directional beam will be pointing to the surface, not to where your buddy probably is.
Still, you have to like the absolutely foolproof mounting.